Indigenous applicants

The Internship Program continues to focus on supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander* students and graduates via internships as pathways to jobs in Indigenous organisations and other organisations working in the Indigenous sector.

We are also able to place Indigenous interns at a wide range of organisations, outside of the sector, so long as the placements are relevant to candidates’ study and career aspirations.

The Commonwealth's Jobs, Land and Economy Programme (JLEP) will provide financial support via Scholarships for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander interns under the Program.

To date, we have arranged 83 placements for Indigenous Commonwealth Scholarship funded interns via our current funding with PM&C.

Eligibility and obligations:

We will accept applications from Indigenous candidates who are preferably in their 2nd year of study or above, or have graduated with an academic background in: business, education, health science, law, media/communications, psychology, social work and some social sciences (including anthropology, archaeology, cultural heritage and environmental management, Indigenous studies, history, human geography and sociology). There are also a handful of opportunities available to candidates with film, music and creative arts, as well as STEM related fields.

We place interns at organisations involved in native title, land rights, justice, policy and community development, health, social welfare and research as well as a handful in the arts/music industry, Australia wide.

Internships will run for 4 to 6 weeks full-time, usually over the university breaks, with flexibility out of those timeframes for graduates.

Scholarships will cover the interns' daily living expenses and, in addition, travel and accommodation costs will be covered for away-from-home placements. Indigenous interns will receive Scholarships in the amount of:

$3,000 for a 4 week internship

$3,750 for a 5 week internship

$4,500 for a 6 week internship.

There may be Tax and Centrelink implications for Indigenous scholarship recipients, and we advise those candidates to seek advice from a tax consultant and Centrelink (see link to more information below)

Indigenous applicants will be assessed according to: their academic record; their demonstrated interest in social justice and/or the Indigenous sector; and their commitment to fulfilling their internship obligations.

Indigenous applicants who are found to be eligible to be placed in a funded placement will be required to provide a declaration of Aboriginality and complete a Participant Eligibility Documentation Formprovided by the Department, prior to the interview round of the matching process.

Please note that students who have taken up the ABSTUDY Residential Cost Option (and are not currently funded of Career Trackers) are encouraged to apply.

Indigenous scholarship recipients will be required to complete an Aurora Commitment Statement which will include the following obligations to:

complete their internship in the confirmed timeframe

send weekly updates to Aurora

provide confirmation that their weekly installment payments have been received

provide receipts for larger expenses such as airfares and accommodation

complete the on-line Aurora Overview questionnaire at the end of their placement

write a 1 page reflection on their internship at the end of their placement

agree to promote the Program and their Host by committing to do a presentation at their university, or attending a Career Fair on our behalf (if possible).

commit to promoting the Program via the Indigenous Centre at your university as well as sharing the information with fellow Indigenous students.

Click here to read what past Indigenous interns have said about their placements.

Click here for information and advice in regards to Tax implications and Centrelink/ABSTUDY for all Indigenous Scholarship recipients.

Click here to download the flyer for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander applicants.

*PLEASE NOTE: Throughout the website, the term "Indigenous" is used to describe Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples.

The internship experience taught me a lot of real life skills that cannot be learnt solely through a university degree. I was able to put what I had learnt into practice at a critical point in my studies, which gave me a greater overall understanding of the content I had been learning. Through this experience I was given an appreciation for the legal, cultural and historical issues surrounding land in the Northern Territory.